Ultimate Slow Cooker Pot Roast that leaves you with tender meat, vegetables and a built in gravy to enjoy them all with in just 15 minutes of prep! Perfect weeknight dinner!
They wanted easy recipes they could make that would remind them of the meals I had made for them. This dish delivers on that promise offering a warm, hearty, healthy meal with little cooking knowledge needed and even without searing the meat you’ll have a delicious meal!
The great thing about this Ultimate Slow Cooker Pot Roast is that the whole meal really is made in one place. We like to serve it with a side salad to add a fresh flavor to the meal but for wintery weather and busy weeknights this is pretty much the gold standard for us for delicious food!
You can add in other herbs and vegetables as you would like. We love playing with adding different root vegetables like turnips and parsnips, sometimes we add onion or sweet potatoes. In the fall we love different squash too. This dish can be adjusted to your favorite veggies with no problems!
Looking for more slow cooker recipes? They’re a favorite around here, here are just a few of them:
- Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken
- Slow Cooker Cuban Mojo Pork
- Slow Cooker Garlic Parmesan Chicken and Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Korean Short Ribs
- Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken
- Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas
- and there are many more slow cooker meals on the site…
Some quick tips about this Ultimate Slow Cooker Pot Roast:
- Browning the beef in a pan before adding it to the slow cooker is a step I would not skip if even remotely possible. That crust is delicious and you don’t want to miss it.
- Seasoning – Yes it looks like a lot of salt, but you also have to remember you have 3 pounds of vegetables under the meat you are seasoning too.
- The cornstarch finisher – To thicken the liquid you’ll need some cornstarch. I usually add this in the last hour of cooking but a quick saucepan heat-up of the liquids with cornstarch will take care of it for you in just a couple of minutes too. It is just one more dish to wash, haha.
- Yukon Potatoes – I love the buttery texture of a yukon gold, you can alternately use russet potatoes here without any problems too.
- If you have fresh thyme by all means use it, I just like how easy this recipe is and pantry friendly so I normally use dried thyme unless I already have fresh on hand.
Tools Used in the Making of this Ultimate Slow Cooker Pot Roast:
Slow Cooker: Love this slow cooker and how programmable it is, it has been a workhorse for me… until…
My New Slow Cooker: This recipe was made in this slow cooker. For larger roasts I also brown the meat in the insert and not lose a bunch of the flavor by transferring the meat and leaving the browned bits behind. If you’re thinking of a new slow cooker, consider it if your budget is open.
Better Than Bouillon: I use this for most recipes where I call for broth (I have it in Chicken, Vegetable, Beef and Mushroom (I love this one for adding umami flavor to things). Its so easy to just add a spoonful to some water and it is just beef broth that has had the water cooked out of it.
Ultimate Pot Roast
Ultimate Slow Cooker Pot Roast
Ingredients
- 4-5 pound chuck roast
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 pound carrots peeled and cut into 2" chunks
- 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes peeled and cut into large chunks
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- minced parsley optional, to garnish
Instructions
Season the chuck roast with the Kosher salt, pepper and thyme (if you are sensitive to sodium, adjust to your taste or you can even leave the salt out altogether since you're adding broth).
Heat your pan (or if you can brown in your slow cooker, do it in that insert to medium high.
Add the canola oil and when it ripples and is hot add in the roast and brown, deeply, for 4-5 minutes on each side.
- In your slow cooker add the carrots, potatoes and garlic.
Lay the beef on top, then add the beef broth and cover, cooking on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.
In the last hour mix your cornstarch and water and add it to the slow cooker to thicken the sauce or you can take the food out when done cooking, and add the leftover liquid to a small saucepan with the cornstarch/water mixture and cook on high for just 2-3 minutes until the liquid is thickened into a gravy.
- Pour the gravy over the meat and garnish with parsley if desired.
I’ve done pot roast in crockpot many times before but I don’t add potatoes until the last 2-3 hrs cause they cook faster than carrots, don’t understand why some recipes suggest adding them in with the roast, meat takes longer to cook in crockpot.
I followed this recipe to the tee, and I ended up having to fish out the carrots and potatoes because after slow cooking for several hours, they have turned into mush and are ready to be mashed. Yikes! I kind of knew that was going to happens and I don’t know why I didn’t question the recipe beforehand. Oh well. I hope the flavor is good. I’m vegan so I have no idea what it tastes like— I’ll have to have my family tell me what they think.
I love your receipts, Nice pic, you look so sweet, healthy and pretty. Thank you again for your help in the kitchen.
We really enjoyed this recipe overall with some minor changes. This was the best pot roast I’ve ever made. I added one onion and a 1/2 cup of Cabernet Sauvignon. I also waited to add the vegetables until after it was cooking for two hours. Cooked on low for 8 hours and meat was very tender. Thanks for the recipe.
Excited to make this for Christmas Eve! But I’m planning on making mashed potatoes as a side, so I don’t need potatoes in the crockpot. Can I just do carrots? Should I/Can I replace the potatoes with something else?
Sure, you can use any root vegetable you’d like.
I’ve tried several other Slow Cooker Pot Roast recipes – this is the best, by far.
I cook it on High for 2 hours – then Low for 6 hours. I flip the roast after the first hour and baste the chuck roast every hour or two thereafter.
This is an AMAZING recipe! Thank you so very much!
Hi Sabrina! I’m going to try making this for Christmas dinner! Any sides you suggest with this? Thank you!
I love mashed potatoes with this dish and a side of rolls to soak up all the goodness. Enjoy!
This is a delicious versatile pot roast that appealed to my entire family. I added more garlic and some tomato paste for a deeper flavor. Will definitely make again and my picky son requested this dish be added to the regular rotation.
First time I’ve tried it and it smells delicious, we’re really looking forward to dinner tonight! I like the idea of adding tomato paste, I’ll try that (or possibly tomato sauce whatever is on hand lol) next time. I think I’ll also throw in some red wine since I like the added layers of flavor that this adds.
Can i use frozen chuck roast or do i need to thaw it first? It’s only 2.5 pounds, not sure if that will lesson cooking time.
You need to thaw it first before placing it into the slow cooker. Enjoy!
This came out amazing! I usually do my roast in the oven with the bag. Used this recipe yesterday and my family raved. They said it was one of the best. I did add onion and put my meat in between the veggies, not on top. I also added Tarragon and bit of Rosemary. Also, I did the gravy stove top and added a little more pepper. Thank you for this!